
Pianist Elisa Galeano was born in Brazil and began playing the piano and violin in her childhood. She pursued her bachelor’s degree in piano performance at the Federal University of Minas Gerais. As a graduate student, Elisa moved to Europe and received an award from the Rotary Club of Germany to pursue her master’s degree at the acclaimed State College of Music in the city of Karlsruhe, where she completed her degree Summa Cum Laude in piano performance. In 2012, Elisa began her studies in the piano performance doctoral program at Louisiana State University and concluded her degree in July 2016. Throughout her academic years, she had the privilege of studying with pianists André Pires, Celina Szrvinsk, Michael Uhde, Jan Grimes, and Willis Delony.
After winning several piano competitions in Brazil and Latin America, Elisa was invited to perform at the Musikhoschule Karlsruhe in celebration of Brazil’s five-hundred-year Jubilee, playing works exclusively by Brazilian composers. The concert received the following critique in the German newspaper Badische Zeitung: “The Toccata by Ronaldo Miranda, played by the pianist Elisa Galeano, had an extraordinary effect on the audience. Elisa let the work shine in its splendor of colors.”
Elisa has collaborated with artists from the Metropolitan Opera, Canadian Opera, Baton Rouge Symphony Orchestra, and with university faculty from Europe and the Americas, participating in more than 100 concert series and international music festivals, including performances on Brazilian television. Her performances include the complete cycle of violin and piano sonatas by Beethoven, as well as an extensive repertoire for winds, strings, and voice.
As a collaborative pianist, Elisa Galeano has worked at Minas Gerais State University and the Federal University of São João del Rei in Brazil, and she served as an assistant at Louisiana State University. She was also the Owner and Artistic Director of Grace Notes Music School in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
Elisa has been teaching for over twenty years, during which time she has attended numerous pedagogy workshops, guest lectured in piano master classes, and taught as a faculty member at eight different music schools in three countries. She was also a piano instructor in the outreach program at two universities in Brazil, where she taught group piano, group keyboard, and applied piano.